Square Enix aimed to inject more ‘drama’ with Octopath Traveler II’s battles

Octopath Traveler II takes everything that the first game did and dials it up to 11. Not only are there returning features and familiar mechanics, there’s a whole new world to explore, a fresh cast of characters, and all-new abilities.

In an interview with Vooks, Director Keisuke Miyauchi talked about how Octopath Traveler II’s battles are enhanced over the first game. In particular, the team was looking to liven up the experience and make things more intense, which they did through the introduction of the Latent Power feature.

Latent Power is a “super move” type ability that each character can use. We included the system because we wanted to inject more drama into battles. The basic flow of battle in the OCTOPATH TRAVELER series is to attack an enemy’s weak point to break them, then use boost and land powerful attacks while they are vulnerable. If that cycle was all there was, it would sometimes become repetitive, so we added the Latent Power system that allows the player to proactively change the battlefield situation to their advantage. The way this gives the player advantages in combat also allows us to make boss enemies with a wider variety of attacks and battle logic patterns. We aimed to create opportunities for players to experience their own individual dramatic moments, such as taking down a powerful boss that was about to kill them because they were able to use their Latent Power at just the right moment.

[Keisuke Miyauchi, Director]